Thanks....For Giving

This afternoon I blog-hopped for a bit and found myself over at Meadowbrook Farm.

While I was there I read about Teresa's "Compassion International" girl she sponsors throughout the year. What a neat post, and so to take off on her idea of sharing what it is we all do this time of year---I thought I would tell you who it is we share with like Jesus taught us to do. After all, it is a season of Thanksgiving and it's followed by a celebration of the Lord's birth. What better way to show His love than to GIVE?

For a long time, I've participated in a program by Samaritan's Purse called "THE SHOEBOX PROJECT" and that's something that I'm sure most of you have heard of. If not, you can read more about it here. I just dropped off my shoebox items this afternoon in a town nearby. If you're too late for the shoebox items, you can always donate toward the shipping of these items at the website.

Not only does Samaritan's purse assemble and wrap all our donations through the shoebox project for gifts for kids around the world at Christmastime, they are up and running all year with disaster relief around the world. As needed, they can, in a short time, have jets ready with supplies to fly wherever they're needed. They help at home and abroad and always with the message of Christ's love.

They also put out a catalog (here's a link to their great online catalog), that looks very much like the one above, that allows the giver to choose what to buy for an individual or a village in a third-world country.

This is a great way to teach kids about compassion, sharing and thinking of others, as they look through the gifts that can range in price from under $10 to the thousands. If you want to buy medicine or immunizations for one family or a whole village, or livestock for one family or a whole village, you can.

If you'd like to buy a single blanket, you can.

My son and I always gravitate toward the pages with the livestock. Usually we get chickens because we loved ours so much and because the eggs will feed the kids nutritious and pure protein, and the chickens will undoubtedly multiply and the flock can expand and the extra eggs can be sold to make income for the families in the village.

I am so glad that there are organizations out there like Samaritans Purse and Compassion International who help us get our giving to the people that need it.

It's as simple as can be. We can do a little or a lot, but we can all do something. I think in times of economic downturn, it's more important than ever to help because God honors the sacrificial giver.

Spread the word, and tell on your blog how you give at Christmas time.

(This year it seems that we are hearing it told around the world about how SORRY someone is about actions of the U.S.A., and I would like to remind us all that our America is the most compassionate of all countries.

I don't know what kind of people dear leader hangs with, but most all the people I know are compassionate and care and take action, especially now but all year long, too.)

And we are compassionate without being forced to be.
We do it because we want to obey Christ.